Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 185 / Monday, September 25, 2006 / Notices 55823 

2000 (65 FR 19476). This statement is 

also available at http://dms.dot.gov. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

Michael Huntley, Division Chief, 

Vehicle and Roadside Operations 

Division (MC–PSV), Office of Bus and 

Truck Standards and Operations, phone 

(202) 366–4001, e-mail MCPSV@dot.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

On October 21, 1974, the 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

issued final regulations establishing the 

Interstate Motor Carrier Noise Emission 

Standards for maximum external noise 

emissions of motor vehicles having a 

gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) or a 

gross combination weight rating 

(GCWR) of more than 10,000 pounds 

that are operated by commercial motor 

carriers engaged in interstate commerce 

(39 FR 38208). These regulations were 

issued under the authority of section 18 

of the Noise Control Act of 1972, which 

also directed the Secretary of 

Transportation to promulgate 

regulations to ensure compliance with 

the EPA standards. 

On February 28, 1975, the Federal 

Highway Administration (FHWA) 

published in the Federal Register (40 

FR 8658) a text of proposed regulations 

establishing measurement 

methodologies for determining whether 

commercial motor vehicles (CMV) 

conform to the Interstate Motor Carrier 

Noise Emission Standards published by 

the EPA at 40 CFR part 202. FHWA 

published final regulations on 

September 12, 1975 (40 FR 42432). The 

new requirements, found at 29 CFR 

325.91, became effective on October 15, 

1975. 

The current requirements of 

§ 325.91—unchanged since their 

adoption in 1975—were established to 

support enforcement of EPA’s Interstate 

Motor Carrier Noise Emission 

Standards. While the corresponding 

section of the EPA regulation requires 

CMVs with a GVWR or GCWR of more 

than 10,000 pounds which are operated 

by interstate motor carriers to be ‘‘

* * * equipped with a muffler or other 

noise dissipative device; * * *’’, the 

language adopted by FHWA in § 325.91 

requires the same vehicles to be ‘‘ * * * 

equipped with either a muffler or other 

noise dissipative device, such as a 

turbocharger (supercharger driven by 

exhaust gases) * * *.’’

It is not clear why the language that 

was adopted in § 325.91 is largely 

identical to that established by EPA 

except that it additionally considers a 

turbocharger to be a noise dissipative 

device under § 325.91(b). There is no 

discussion in the preambles to either the 

February 1975 notice of proposed 

rulemaking or in the September 1975 

final rule explaining why turbochargers 

were specifically included in the list of 

noise dissipative devices. In its petition, 

the Truck Manufacturers Association 

(TMA) noted: 

At the time these regulations were written, 

many diesel engines were naturally 

aspirated, and coincidently much louder 

than then-comparable turbocharged equipped 

engines/trucks. In that context, it made sense 

to include turbochargers with mufflers as 

acceptable noise dissipative devices, since 

both devices quieted trucks appreciably 

compared to trucks with naturally aspirated 

engines and totally unmuffled exhaust 

systems. 

All newly manufactured trucks are 

currently equipped and certified to meet 

EPA’s Transportation Equipment Noise 

Emission Controls requirement of 80 

dB(A) (40 CFR part 205) when they are 

placed into initial service. Section 

325.91 provides a simple inspection 

protocol to assist Federal and State 

safety inspectors in confirming 

compliance with the EPA exhaust 

system requirements of the Interstate 

Motor Carrier Noise Emission Standards 

(40 CFR 202.22). 

While FMCSA believes that the vast 

majority of CMV operators currently 

comply with § 325.91, the TMA petition 

notes that the regulatory language of 

§ 325.91, as currently written, 

conceivably permits vehicle operators to 

remove mufflers or other noise 

dissipative devices and still meet the 

Federal inspection requirements merely 

because the CMV engine is equipped 

with a turbocharger. 

In its petition, TMA noted that 

* * * removing the muffler can cause the 

truck to be 10–20 dB(A) louder; a 10 to 100 

fold increase in the emitted sound power 

level of the vehicle. 

Additionally, TMA stated that it is * * * 

not aware of any other credible, satisfactorily 

performing, and commercially available 

exhaust noise dissipative device other than 

mufflers. 

Petition for Rulemaking 

In its June 17, 2005 petition for 

rulemaking, TMA requested that the 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Regulations (FMCSRs) be amended to 

eliminate turbochargers from the list of 

equipment considered to be noise 

dissipative devices. TMA proposes that 

the phrase ‘‘, such as a turbocharger 

(supercharger driven by exhaust gases)’’

be removed from 49 CFR 325.91(b). 

Request for Comments 

FMCSA requests public comment on 

TMA’s petition for rulemaking to amend 

49 CFR 325.91(b). Specifically, FMCSA 

requests that commenters indicate 

whether they believe the FMCSRs 

should be amended as requested by the 

petitioner and whether there is any data 

or other relevant information to suggest 

the need for such a change. FMCSA also 

requests information concerning the 

impact of the requested change on 

motor carriers’ ability to achieve 

compliance with the requirements of 

section 325.91. 

FMCSA will consider all comments 

received by close of business on October 

25, 2006. Comments will be available 

for examination in the docket at the 

location listed under the ADDRESSES

section of this notice. FMCSA will file 

comments received after the comment 

closing date in the public docket and 

will consider them to the extent 

practicable. In addition to late 

comments, FMCSA will also continue to 

file in the public docket relevant 

information that becomes available after 

the comment closing date. Interested 

persons should monitor the public 

docket for new material. 

Issued on: September 8, 2006. 

John H. Hill, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 06–8156 Filed 9–22–06; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Railroad Administration 

Docket No. [FRA–2000–7257; Notice No. 37] 

Railroad Safety Advisory Committee 

(RSAC); Working Group Activity 

Update 

AGENCY: Federal Railroad 

Administration (FRA), Department of 

Transportation (DOT). 

ACTION: Announcement of Railroad 

Safety Advisory Committee (RSAC) 

Working Group Activities. 

SUMMARY: The FRA is updating its 

announcement of RSAC’s Working 

Group activities to reflect its current 

status. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Patricia Butera or Lydia Leeds, RSAC 

Coordinator, FRA, 1120 Vermont 

Avenue, NW., Mailstop 25, Washington, 

DC 20590, (202) 493–6212/6213 or 

Grady Cothen, Deputy Associate 

Administrator for Safety, FRA, 1120 

Vermont Avenue, NW., Mailstop 25, 

Washington, DC 20590, (202) 493–6302. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

notice serves to update FRA’s last 

announcement of working group 

activities and status reports of May 12, 


rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
55824 Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 185 / Monday, September 25, 2006 / Notices 

2006, (71 FR 27781). The 29th full 

Committee meeting was held May 18, 

2006. 

Since its first meeting in April of 

1996, the RSAC has accepted twentytwo tasks. Status for each of the tasks is 

provided below: 

Open Tasks 

Task 96–4—Reviewing the 

appropriateness of the agency’s current 

policy regarding the applicability of 

existing and proposed regulations to 

tourist, excursion, scenic, and historic 

railroads. This Task was accepted on 

April 2, 1996, and a Working Group was 

established. The Working Group 

monitored the steam locomotive 

regulation task. Planned future activities 

involve the review of other regulations 

for possible adaptation to the safety 

needs of tourist and historic railroads. 

Contact: Grady Cothen, (202) 493–6302. 

Task 97–2—Evaluating the extent to 

which environmental, sanitary, and 

other working conditions in locomotive 

cabs affect the crew’s health and the safe 

operation of locomotives, proposing 

standards where appropriate. This Task 

was accepted June 24, 1997. 

(Sanitation) (Completed) 

(Noise exposure) On June 27, 2003, 

the full RSAC gave consensus by ballot 

on the NPRM. The NPRM was 

published in the Federal Register on 

June 23, 2004. The comment period 

ended September 21, 2004. Task Force 

and Working Group meetings were held 

March 1, and March 2 and 3, 2005, 

respectively, to review the public 

comments and recommend a final rule. 

The Working Group reached agreement 

on all issues, and its report was 

presented to the full Committee on May 

18, 2005. The final rule is in review and 

clearance. 

(Cab Temperature) (Completed) 

Note: Additional related topics such as 

vibration may be considered by the Working 

Group in the future. Contact: Jeffrey Horn, 

(202) 493–6283. 

Task 03–01—Passenger Safety. This 

Task was accepted on May 20, 2003, 

and a Working Group was established. 

Prior to embarking on substantive 

discussions of a specific task, the 

Working Group set forth in writing a 

specific description of the task. The 

Working Group will report any planned 

activity to the full Committee at each 

scheduled full RSAC meeting, including 

milestones for completion of projects 

and progress toward completion. At the 

first meeting held September 9–10, 

2003, a consolidated list of issues was 

completed. At the second meeting held 

November 6–7, 2003, four task groups 

were established: emergency 

preparedness; mechanical-general 

issues; mechanical-safety appliances; 

and track/vehicle interaction. The task 

groups met and reported on activities 

for Working Group consideration at the 

third meeting held May 11–12, 2004, 

and a fourth meeting was held October 

26–27, 2004. The Working Group met 

on March 21–22, 2006, and tentatively 

agreed to establish a task force on 

General Passenger Safety. The Working 

Group met September 12–13, 2006, and 

activated the General Passenger Safety 

Task Force. 

(Emergency Preparedness) At the 

Working Group meeting of March 9–10, 

2005, the Working Group received and 

approved the consensus report of the 

Emergency Preparedness Task Force 

related to emergency egress and rescue 

access. These recommendations were 

presented to and approved by the full 

Committee on May 18, 2005. The 

Working Group met on September 7–8, 

2005, and additional, supplementary 

recommendations were presented to and 

accepted by the full RSAC on October 

11, 2005. An NPRM on Emergency 

Systems was published on August 24, 

2006, and is open for comments until 

October 23, 2006. 

(General Mechanical) Initial 

recommendations on mechanical issues 

(revisions to 49 CFR Part 238) were 

approved by the full Committee on 

January 26, 2005. At the Working Group 

meeting of September 7–8, 2005, the 

task force presented additional 

perfecting amendments and the full 

RSAC approved them on October 11, 

2005. An NPRM was published in the 

Federal Register on December 8, 2005, 

(70 FR 73070). Public comments were 

due by February 17, 2006. FRA is 

currently preparing a final rule. 

(Passenger Equipment 

Crashworthiness) The Crashworthiness 

Task Force provided consensus 

recommendations on static end strength 

that were adopted by the Working 

Group on September 7–8, 2005. The full 

Committee accepted the 

recommendations on October 11, 2005. 

The FRA is preparing an NPRM. 

(Vehicle/Track Interaction) The task 

force is developing proposed revisions 

to Parts 213 and 238 principally 

regarding high-speed passenger service. 

Contact: Charles Bielitz, (202) 493–6314. 

Task 05–01—Review of Roadway 

Worker Protection issues. This Task was 

accepted on January 26, 2005, to review 

49 CFR 214, Subpart C, Roadway 

Worker Protection, and related sections 

of Subpart A; recommend consideration 

of specific actions to advance the ontrack safety of railroad employees and 

contractors engaged in maintenance-ofway activities throughout the general 

system of railroad transportation, 

including clarification of existing 

requirements. A Working Group has 

been established and will report to the 

RSAC any specific actions identified as 

appropriate. The first meeting of the 

Working Group was held on April 12–

14, 2005. The Working Group will 

report planned activity to the full 

Committee at each scheduled 

Committee meeting, including 

milestones for completion of projects 

and progress toward completion. The 

Working Group met on June 22–24, 

2005, August 8–11, 2005, September 

20–22, 2005, November 8–9, 2005, 

January 10–11, 2006, February 1–2, 

2006, March 15–16, 2006, April 11–12, 

2006, and August 22–23, 2006. To date, 

the group has drafted and accepted 

regulatory language for various 

revisions, clarifications, and additions 

to 16 sections of the rule. The next 

Working Group meeting is being 

planned for November, 2006. A meeting 

is scheduled for January 17–18, 2007, 

with the final meeting scheduled for 

February 27–28, 2007. Contact: 

Christopher Schulte, (202) 493–6251. 

Task 05–02—Reduce Human FactorCaused Train Accident/Incidents. This 

Task was accepted on May 18, 2005, to 

reduce the number of human factorcaused train accidents/incidents and 

related employee injuries. A Working 

Group was established. The Working 

Group will report any planned activity 

to the full Committee at each scheduled 

full RSAC meeting, including 

milestones for completion of projects 

and progress toward completion. The 

Working Group met on July 12–13, 

2005, August 31—September 1, 2005, 

September 28–29, 2005, October 25–26, 

2005, November 16–17, 2005, and 

December 6–7, 2005. The final Working 

Group meeting devoted to developing a 

proposed rule was held February 8–9, 

2006. The Working Group was not able 

to deliver a consensus regulatory 

proposal, but did recommend that it be 

used to review comments on FRA’s 

forthcoming NPRM, which is under 

development with the Working Group’s 

discussion draft as its basis. Contact: 

Douglas Taylor, (202) 493–6255. 

Task 06–01—Locomotive Safety 

Standards. This task was accepted on 

February 22, 2006, to review Title 49 

CFR Part 229, Railroad Locomotive 

Safety Standards, and revise as 

appropriate. A Working Group has been 

established. The Working Group will 

report any planned activity to the full 

Committee at each scheduled full RSAC 

meeting, including milestones for 

completion of projects and progress 


rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES
Federal Register / Vol. 71, No. 185 / Monday, September 25, 2006 / Notices 55825 

toward completion. The first Working 

Group meeting was held May 8–10, 

2006. The Working Group met on 

August 8–9, 2006, and the next meeting 

is scheduled for September 25–26, 2006. 

Contact: George Scerbo, (202) 493–6249. 

Task 06–02—Track Safety Standards 

and Continuous Welded Rail. Section 

9005 of the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, 

Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A 

Legacy for Users (Pub. L. No. 109–59, 

‘‘SAFETEA–LU’’), the 2005 surface 

transportation authorization act, 

requires FRA to issue requirements for 

inspection of joint bars in continuous 

welded rail (CWR) to detect cracks that 

could affect the integrity of the track 

structure. 49 U.S.C. 20142(e). FRA 

published an Interim Final Rule 

establishing new requirements for 

inspections on November 2, 2005, (70 

FR 66288). On October 11, 2005, FRA 

offered the RSAC a task to review 

comments on this IFR, but the 

conditions could not be established 

under which the Committee could have 

undertaken this with a view toward 

consensus. Comments on the IFR were 

received through December 19, 2005. 

FRA is reviewing the comments. On 

February 22, 2006, the RSAC accepted 

this task to review and revise the CWR 

related to provisions of the Track Safety 

Standards, with particular emphasis on 

reduction of derailments and 

consequent injuries and damage caused 

by defective conditions, including joint 

failures, in track using CWR. A Working 

Group has been established. The 

Working Group will report any planned 

activity to the full Committee at each 

scheduled full RSAC meeting, including 

milestones for completion of projects 

and progress toward completion. The 

first Working Group meeting was held 

April 3–4, 2006, at which time the 

Working Group reviewed comments on 

the IFR. The second Working Group 

meeting was held April 26–28, 2006. 

The Working Group also met May 24–

25, 2006, and July 19–20, 2006. The 

Working Group reported consensus 

recommendations for the final rule that 

were accepted by the full Committee by 

mail ballot on August 11, 2006. FRA is 

currently preparing a final rule. Contact: 

Ken Rusk, (202) 493–6236. 

Completed Tasks 

Task 96–1—(Completed) Revising the 

Freight Power Brake Regulations. 

Task 96–2—(Completed) Reviewing 

and recommending revisions to the 

Track Safety Standards (49 CFR Part 

213). 

Task 96–3—(Completed) Reviewing 

and recommending revisions to the 

Radio Standards and Procedures (49 

CFR Part 220). 

Task 96–5—(Completed) Reviewing 

and recommending revisions to Steam 

Locomotive Inspection Standards (49 

CFR Part 230). 

Task 96–6—(Completed) Reviewing 

and recommending revisions to 

miscellaneous aspects of the regulations 

addressing Locomotive Engineer 

Certification (49 CFR Part 240). 

Task 96–7—(Completed) Developing 

Roadway Maintenance Machines (OnTrack Equipment) Safety Standards. 

Task 96–8—(Completed) This 

Planning Task evaluated the need for 

action responsive to recommendations 

contained in a report to Congress 

entitled, Locomotive Crashworthiness & 

Working Conditions. 

Task 97–1—(Completed) Developing 

crashworthiness specifications (49 CFR 

Part 229) to promote the integrity of the 

locomotive cab in accidents resulting 

from collisions. 

Task 97–3—(Completed) Developing 

event recorder data survivability 

standards. 

Task 97–4 and Task 97–5—

(Completed) Defining Positive Train 

Control (PTC) functionalities, describing 

available technologies, evaluating costs 

and benefits of potential systems, and 

considering implementation 

opportunities and challenges, including 

demonstration and deployment. 

Task 97–6—(Completed) Revising 

various regulations to address the safety 

implications of processor-based signal 

and train control technologies, 

including communications-based 

operating systems. 

Task 97–7—(Completed) Determining 

damages qualifying an event as a 

reportable train accident. 

Task 00–1—(Completed—task 

withdrawn) Determining the need to 

amend regulations protecting persons 

who work on, under, or between rolling 

equipment and persons applying, 

removing or inspecting rear end 

marking devices (Blue Signal 

Protection). 

Task 01–1—(Completed) Developing 

conformity of FRA’s regulations for 

accident/incident reporting (49 CFR Part 

225) to revised regulations of the 

Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration (OSHA), U.S. 

Department of Labor, and to make 

appropriate revisions to the FRA Guide 

for Preparing Accident/Incident Reports 

(Reporting Guide). 

Please refer to the notice published in 

the Federal Register on March 11, 1996, 

(61 FR 9740) for more information about 

the RSAC. 

Issued in Washington, DC, on September 

18, 2006. 

Grady C. Cothen, Jr. 

Deputy Associate Administrator for Safety 

Standards and Program Development. 

[FR Doc. 06–8124 Filed 9–22–06; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Surface Transportation Board 

[STB Ex Parte No. 664] 

Methodology To Be Employed in 

Determining the Railroad Industry’s 

Cost of Capital 

AGENCY: Surface Transportation Board. 

ACTION: Request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The Board is seeking 

comments on the appropriate 

methodology to be employed in 

determining the railroad industry’s 

estimated cost of capital to be used in 

future annual cost-of-capital 

determinations. We are also soliciting 

comments on how evidence should be 

submitted and analyzed in future costof-capital proceedings. 

DATES: Comments are due on or before 

November 6, 2006. 

ADDRESSES: Send comments (an original 

and 10 copies) referring to STB Ex Parte 

No. 664 to: Surface Transportation 

Board, 1925 K Street, NW., Washington, 

DC 20423–0001. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul 

Aguiar, (202) 565–1527. [Assistance for 

the hearing impaired is available 

through the Federal Information Relay 

Service (FIRS) at 1–800–877–8339.] 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 

205 of the Railroad Revitalization and 

Regulatory Reform Act of 1976 (4R Act) 

first codified the requirement for the 

Board or its predecessor to establish and 

maintain standards for railroad revenue 

adequacy. This provision stated that 

railroad revenues should provide a flow 

of net income plus depreciation 

adequate to support prudent capital 

outlays, assure the repayment of a 

reasonable level of debt, permit the 

raising of needed equity capital, cover 

the effects of inflation, and attract and 

retain capital in amounts adequate to 

provide a sound transportation system 

in the United States. Subsequent laws 

(including the ICC Termination Act of 

1995) have retained this requirement. 

Thus, each year the Board makes a 

determination of which railroads are or 

are not revenue adequate. 

The annual determination of the 

railroad industry’s cost of capital is used 

in evaluating the adequacy of railroad 


rwilkins on PROD1PC63 with NOTICES